JACK

M E N ' S C U L T U R E 23 Learning his artisanal craft in Istanbul and honing it in Sydney, Sumer Sayan (the jewellery designer behind HARLIN JONES) draws strength and inspiration from powerful symbols spanning the cultures of Native Indians to the ancient Egyptians that talk to the restless wanderers, nomads and trailblazers amongst us. I was born in a little town 100km east of Istanbul, Turkey called, Izmit. My family & I left Izmit, Sydney bound in March of ‘87 when I was 5 years old. As a teenager, I ended up dropping out of high school and going back to Turkey so I could start an internship with my uncle as a jeweller. In Turkey as a young intern who knew nothing about jewellery making, I was blown away by the whole process. From the initial designing stage, to the sourcing of the gemstones, to the final piece of art that would emerge, crafted by the master jeweller. I was lucky in the fact that I started my internship in a place like Istanbul. To learn such an old trade in such an old city surrounded by ancient buildings and old bazaars. It definitely made me fall in love with the art of jewellery making and the city inspired me in a way that I wouldn't have been if I was to have start anywhere else. There's definitely a certain magic when it comes to the arts in Istanbul. Another thing that I am extremely grateful for was the fact that my mentor was my uncle, he and his master jewellers were very involved with my learning. As an intern or apprentice it's extremely important to be in the right hands. Following my internship, I returned to Sydney to start a full- time apprenticeship. After years of learning the skills needed to be a bench jeweller, I turned my focus to design, as I knew that's where my passion lay. And for the next few years, it was all about trying to work on my own individual signature style, which was a fusion of all that I'd been drawn to and loved as a kid to now. Everything from music, to art, architecture, ancient civilizations, and more. All the collections that I've worked on have all come from one initial piece that I've been happy with. I use that initial piece as inspiration for the rest of the collection. That first initial piece usually comes from weeks or even months of constant scribbling and ideas. Whether I'm inspired by a certain period in time or a certain place. For me, it's always been the mission to get that one piece that I'm happy with, and from there on everything flows pretty quickly and easily. Creating bespoke pieces is something I really love doing, as you know that every job is going to be completely different. I love the challenge. I think the most important part of creating bespoke pieces is to get a really good understanding of the person you are designing for. So I try to spend a lot of time talking to the client about everything other than jewellery just to get a feel for what would suit them. Everything, from their dress sense, body shape and the way they work, to their occupation. All are taken into consideration before I begin to design their piece. If you were wanting to get a bespoke piece made it is important to give the designer as much information as possible, whether its a similar design you've liked that you'd like incorporated, or symbols/dates. The more info you can share the better the designer can reinterpret things. From the initial meeting to coming up with the design usually takes a week or so, depending on how busy I am. Once the design has been approved by the client it usually takes another couple of weeks to make the actual piece. So overall, you're looking at a 3-4 week turn around on bespoke pieces. www.harlinjones.com harlinjones harlinjonesjewellery